Advertisement
Published: August 15th 2017
Edit Blog Post
FROM AMA LOG: Saturday, 8/12/17
DEPART: Squirrel Cove @ 1000
ARRIVE: Thurston Harbor @ 1730
NM: 31
WEATHER: Calm, clear skies (except smoke).
PILOTAGE: Super smooth motoring as we head north and up Lewis Channel, skirting the west side of Desolation Sound. We pass 2 humpback whales in Calm Channel and never spotted them but found out from all the chatter on whale-watching boats on channel 7A.
We easily glide through Yaculta Rapids though arriving almost an hour before slack then play tourist in Big Bay while waiting for just the right moment to enter Dent Rapids. Huge sea lions, sun-bathing on the north side of Dent Isl. preen and shake their manes, noses point straight up, then dip as if to wave us through safely.
Hearing news of brown bears in Frederick Arm, we wander northeast up the inlet to it’s end where of course we find bear rocks & bear logs but no bears yet. A beautiful sliver of snow hangs high in a cirque on mountains to the south. Grizzlies were spotted near the small river mouth near an old fishery. There looked to be an active logging operation but luckily no one operating on Saturday.
We head across the Cordero Channel to try to catch our first salmon. Hall point was very lucky for us last year, especially for Howard who handed over a Coho to us on our way south at the end of our journey because he had caught so many! We slip into the line of fishing boats hugging the shore, hoping the buck tail lure Peter found will entice a salmon swimming at the surface. Most fishermen were with guides and virtually all had downriggers where they fished for the Kings at 350 feet. We made 3 passes then gave up because we couldn’t find the polar bear buck tail lures, special ordered, but maybe never making it on Ama.
Steering clear of Shoal Bay, we head into Nodales Channel and find solitary anchorage in Thurston Bay. After dropping a crab pot on the way in, we anchor in well-protected waters on the backside of Block Isl. Sweet silence with the scree of eagles magnified off nearby cliffs, greet us. Cloudy skies threatening rain keep us from looking up but we are on the lookout for creatures along the shore, especially the beach.
It seems like it take hours for the sun to set up here. We aren’t anywhere near AK yet the lingering light, late into the evening, reminds us of Sitka and the skies up north. No fresh fish for dinner, though we had scarfed down tuna sandwiches at lunch, so we managed to keep up our daily doses of omega 3s.
The rain started in earnest just as we were fading, so we were very surprised to find wet blankets and sheets, but luckily our mattress pad protected the mattress from the dampness. Not the best time to be changing bedding but we managed, while also taping up towels and laying out rain coats to protect us through the night.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.193s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 5; qc: 48; dbt: 0.0593s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb